I like octaNe. I really do. But I had a friend of mine run the game for me, and he came up with a nice elaborate backstory. My six threw a wrench into his story inadvertently. He decided that the system wasn't so hot for him, as he felt there was no way you could use the setting of octaNe to create something interesting without a good roll blowing it out of the water.

I know I know, "that's not what playing octaNe's all about!" However, there are times when the players want to get into their characters and GMs want to play their cool stories. Surely there's a way that GMs and players can do this without putting either a player or a GM on the spot!

I have two ways to get around this: one, make the GM a player also, and have GM duties switch depending on who rolls a five or a six. Again, puts players on a spot, and some GMs might try to hold on to the coveted(?) position by ramping up hazard points.

Two, keep GM/player relations as they are in the game, but alter the chart for the rolls slightly, more in keeping with the GM/player dynamic.

Here's what I came up with:

1- Player narrates abysmal turn of fortune, up to and including his own character's demise. Cannot narrate the rest of the characters' demises without their permission. GM has partial input.

2- Player narrates how his character is hindered (blindness, onset of insanity, blood loss, illness, loss of important equipment and/or information, whatever.) GM has partial input, but should be lenient.

3- Player narrates how his character is inconvenienced (enemies escape with prize, special abilities go on the fritz, momentary blindness, etc.)

4/5 GM narrates success results. Player earns a plot point. Player may earn up to his Style's worth of Plot points or earn some in-game benefit from the GM if he narrates a character inconvenience that resulted from the crisis.

6- GM narrates success results. Player gains his Style's value in plot points. May request an in-game benefit/fact resulting from the success. GM has right of refusal, but must then reward player with an additional Plot Point.

Thus, the GM has some more regulation of the ongoing story, the player's protect their character's from GM whim, and the game itself doesn't turn into Jesus Christ, Vampire Hunter[/b]. Fun to watch if you turn your brain off, but if you're playing to immerse yourself in the game and it comes across like that, frustrating to play through.

As usual, there is Social Contract for the roll results above. 1) It needs to be in genre. 2) It needs to have some causal relation to the events leading up to the roll. 3) It needs to be cool. (Ignore rule #2 if it complies with Rules #1 and 3.)

I like octaNe. I really do. But I had a friend of mine run the game for me, and he came up with a nice elaborate backstory. My six threw a wrench into his story inadvertently. He decided that the system wasn't so hot for him, as he felt there was no way you could use the setting of octaNe to create something interesting without a good roll blowing it out of the water.

I know I know, "that's not what playing octaNe's all about!" However, there are times when the players want to get into their characters and GMs want to play their cool stories. Surely there's a way that GMs and players can do this without putting either a player or a GM on the spot!

<snip>

All I can do is shrug my shoulders and say, "You want to play Trollbabe, not octaNe." In hindsight, I'd probably include Trollbabe-style narration rules for Arthouse-style games of octaNe (GM narrates success, player narrates failure). Also, I'd make it so that the GM earns Plot Points (GM would spend PP's to create Hazards) on a 5 or 6 (and player earns them on a 1 or 2) so that when the character breezes through obstacles, future obstacles are that much tougher.